Nov NBR: The Highest Authority Versus The Red Chapel Gang II

[Thechosenone]

:seamus

Red Chapel Gang

Seamus

Copy Cat

2 Crooked Men

Madame Sybelle

Bete Noir

3 Rotten Belles

Strategy- Treasure Hunt

Scheme- Grudge (Guild Guard)

:justice

Death Marshals

Lady Justice

Scales of Justice

2 Death Marshals

1 Guild Guard

Convict Gunslinger

Judge

Watcher

Strategy- Reconnoiter

Schemes- Grudge (Madame Sybelle) and Assassinate (Seamus)

Pre-game

The Pinnacle’s Chamberlain, Galen Klypse, pushes open the monolithic doors before him. Stale crypt like wind assails his fat nose. The air tastes both salty and sweet.

Like cinnamon and fresh death.

There is light. Embers burn in cauldrons around the chamber shedding a red glow across the dark stone. The entire room shines the color of tortured meat.

Klypse steps in and gestures “The Sacrarium of Twilight.” He speaks to the two figures behind him. To his left is Guild Marshal Isabella Flood. Her critical eye takes in what looks like a crypt recently unsealed. Beside her is the Governor’s Secretary. Lucius knows this place.

“Or so it says on the old maps of the Pinnacle. The inhabitants here call it the Precious Quiet.” Lucius says from behind his tarnished mask. Even to his eyes the darkness of the Precious Quiet is difficult to see through. It hates the intrusion of light and sound. “This is the haven of the Death Marshal officer Flood. Try to keep your voice down. They dislike disturbance.”

Klypse leads the way, lighting a lantern and quickly dimming it. There is a serpent like seething of anger from many dark corners of the Quiet as the lantern shines its brightest for a moment.

Flood looks to the dark and in it see can see hunched shapes, gaunt and pale in tone. Scraggy silver hair hangs over tight faces and sallow eyes that flicker like those of night predators. They crouch on the ground, wide hats over their faces and heavy dusters covering their bodies.

She watches one holding a hunk of something to its face and biting into it.

Lucius walks to the center of the room past more shadows and more sinister glares. He stops a pace or so away from a massive basin filled with blood. It’s set into the floor beneath a statue that stands all the way to the ceiling. It resembles the roman goddess Dike though wounds chiseled into her wrists and throat bleed vitae down her form and into the basin constantly. The liquid flows without a sound and mingles with the basin noiselessly.

Lucius taps the head of his cane on the edge of the basin. The knocking noise might as well be thunder the way it echoes in the dark.

“Arise. The Pinnacle calls you to service, Lady.”

Klypse can see the concern and confusion in Officer Flood’s face. He delights in her analytical nature. Not out of any respect for it, but because she is so often left unsatisfied. Malifaux offers her few answers and much disappointment. It’s as sweet as Soulstone confectionary. “She has a name, at least a first one. Odetta. But she rarely uses that. She is the Provost Marshal of this ghastly order.”

The blood stirs though the sloshing is muted. A hand creeps over the basin edge to grip it. Flood sees a petite hand with black painted nails. An angel rises into full view. She is nude and perfect, the blood that coats her seems to slither into her flesh leaving behind only deathly pallor free of debris. She is without scar, without flaw and without humanity. Isabella Flood is not a religious person but as her eyes run the length of this woman’s body she can’t help but think this is what an angel would look like. Not beautiful, not inviting. Unnaturally perfect and born of fear. Where angels walk there is death.

Kylpse takes a moment to allow his eyes to wander her amble curves. He watches specks of blood as they are consumed into the nape of her neck, her lips, her loins and her breasts. She eats up red mess. Blood crawls up her cheeks and behind black eyes with white pupils. “The Lady Justice.”

The Lady leans over the basin, her face only inches from Lucius’ mask. Empty eyes meet ancient ones in a silent stare. Different aspects of oblivion meet in still confrontation. Neither blink.

“What do you want Secretary?” Her voice silken, soft and innocent. But it sounds tired as well. There is an undertone of aggravation.

“Division intelligence has informed me that Goyal Street in the Echo Marsh district has fallen under the watchful eye of the Red Chapel Gang.”

“Seamus” She coos. Isabella wonders what sort of history one would require to think of Seamus fondly.

“Yes. Go there. Survey the area. Convince him it is unwise to wander far from Red Chapel.” Lucius says. Isabella can sense aggravation in him as well. She wonders what the secretary knows of this Lady Justice and her history with Seamus. It must be why he’s asking her to deal with him.

Lady Justice leaves her basin. A few smears of blood slick the floor before the remainder is consumed by her hungry skin. Klypse murmurs at the sight of her fully emerged from the basin. He watches her grab a ribbon of blood from the basin, the viscera coating the cloth soaks into her body leaving behind a blindfold that she tightens around her eyes.

“Be careful, he has a terrible gun and a bag of blades.” Isabella blurts out. Neither Lucius or Klypse expected her to speak. Isabella remembers the crack of Seamus’ gun. She remembers him pointing it at her but if he fired… that she can’t remember. Why wouldn’t he though she wonders. The harder she thinks, the more she realizes that pieces are missing. She’s not sure how she got back to the Pinnacle after her last meeting with Seamus.

The Lady reaches into the basin and pulls out her greatsword. The filth coating it runs up the blade and into her skin. “May I take her…” Lady Justice runs her cold hand over Isabella’s cheek. It sends a shiver down her spine.

“You may take her to Goyal Street and show her how the Death Marshals do business. That is the extent to which you may take her.” Lucius answers back. He then gestures for Klypse and Flood to follow him out. Klypse licks his bloated lips before turning. Isabella leaves quickly. It takes a great deal of concern for her not to run past Matheson and out of the Precious Quiet.

Turn One and Two

Officer Flood takes note of the action all across Goyal street using one of the Watcher’s Eyes. It’s an orb like device that allows her to see what the flapping mechanical nightmare sees. The Guild’s clawed executioner walks confidently through the back alley behind the textile plant with the Marshals following. Lady Justice told her the names of the Marshals, Earnest and Valor. They ignore the harrowing screams of the living dead that clog the far end of the alley. She wonders if they draw confidence from the presence of Hugo Black, a convict freed from the Guild gulags to serve as a hit man. Klypse thought it would be a good idea to take someone as equally depraved as Seamus.

She noted the strange intensity Black had in his remaining good eye when he seen one of the zombies, a black staggering mess with a riding crop in her hand. “Dance fer’ me Sybelle. Just the way I used ta like it.” He teased while riddling her with bullets from his peacekeepers.

The Watcher focuses on Lady Justice running along the street edge of Goyal. She takes to the air corkscrewing with her sword edge orbiting around her. It spills Seamus’ blood with sickening ease. The man’s jacket gapes open and real living blood flows. He looks much more vulnerable then she remembers.

“Oh pretty miss, I’m not lookin’ fer ye tonight. I was hoping ta get a moment of time with that lovely belle ms. Flood.” Seamus’ voice is heard loud and clear through the Watcher’s eye.

She shudders as her name rolls out his mouth. She hates that he knows her. She hates that a madman knows her name.

Turn Three and Four

Sybelle crumbles to the streets uttering a final gasp as Black fires a final round into her face. His pistols turn on the screeching belle beside her. She too is carved to pieces. “Night my love, I’ll catch ya next time around.” Black says.

A deafening howl draws his attention to a corpse with a broken neck and mining tool in hand. Its shattered hand grabs onto the side of the textile plant’s wall. A quake runs from his fingers and through the building. The shaking sends debris crashing down upon Black and Marshal Ernest burying the two beneath the weight.

The Executioner rips the last rotting lovely apart with his claws but through her spurt of blood rises a phantom spectre. A woman both beautiful and cruel her’s knives bite into the fat dead looking flesh of the Executioner. Isabella remembers the soothing song and sweet giggle of the woman as she slashed into her fellow officers last time she met. But the wounds must not have been that bad otherwise how would she and the others have survived. More parts are missing from her memory.

The Crooked man is brought down by Marshal Valor’s Peacebringer.

The Watcher’s Eye shows Lady Justice hacking through another of the Crooked men and Seamus’ hideous little top hat wearing troll before chasing down the hatter into the shadows. She can’t see what happens there but it’s not Seamus that leaves the obscuring dark. The Lady steps back into the night unharmed. She licks off the blood coating her fingertips and smiles as she walks around the Textile Plant and toward the psychopathic spirit.

Turn 5+

Lady Justice walks around the corner of the plant to see her Marshals buried or bleeding their stagnant blood onto the streets. The spirit dives into her digging one of her blades through the Lady’s shoulder. Justice doesn’t flinch, she spins on the spot hacking the phantom’s head from its neck. The entire entity fades like smoke from an extinguished candle.

She looks down the alley swatting away the laughing mists belonging to the phantom. Isabella and Lady Justice are the only souls left in this alley. Isabella wonders exactly how many souls are in this alley. “Officer Flood, will you please coordinate with my Judge and my Marshals to survey the streets. I’ll be near if you need me.”

Lady Justice walks past Isabella and again she runs her hand over the Officer, this time across her neck. “You are so warm still. I hope you stay that way.” Justice says before leaving Isabella’s sight.

The Officer leaves to find the Judge and the rest of the Marshals. This time Lucius is not around. This time she runs.

Results

Red Chapel Gang- Partial success for treasure hunt 2VP

Death Marshals- Complete success on Reconnoiter 4VP, Success on Assassinate and Grudge 4VP

:congrats::justice

[the_madhatter1]

very good :congrats: